Amend the bill, as and if amended, by adding an appropriately
numbered SECTION to read:

/ SECTION ___. Section
59-40-170 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 274 of 2006,
is further amended to read:

"Section 59-40-170.
The Department of Education shall make available, upon
request, a list of vacant and unused buildings and vacant and
unused portions of buildings that are owned by school districts
in this State and that may be suitable for the operation of a
charter school. The department shall make the list available to
applicants for charter schools and to existing charter schools.
The list must include the address of each building, a short
description of the building, and the name of the owner of the
building. Nothing in this section requires the owner of
a building on the list to sell or lease the building or a
portion of the building to a charter school or to any other
school or to any other prospective buyer or tenant. However, if
a school district declares a building surplus and chooses to
sell or lease the building, a charter school's board of
directors or a charter committee operating or applying within
the district must be given the first refusal to purchase or
lease the building under the same or better terms and conditions
as it would be offered to the public.If a charter
school within a school district that owns these properties
wishes to occupy or use these vacant properties, it shall notify
the school district of its intention, and it may occupy or use
these properties, free of charge, for the duration of the
existence of the charter school." /